No More Hiding

Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. (Hebrews 4:16 NIV)

When my husband and I first married, we got ourselves a couple of dogs. Attila was a Doberman Pinscher German Shepherd mix—and he was big. My husband loved that dog. Tank came into our life six months later when a neighborhood child found him abandoned on the side of the road. He was a Chow Shepherd, not as big as Attila, but still a big guy. Tank was mine.

We loved our dogs, but they surely could get into mischief. Like the time I left quiche cooling on the counters. I learned exactly how big Attila was when we came home to find the licked-clean pie plates on the floor. Whenever they misbehaved, my husband would scold them in his military command voice. Yikes. The dogs’ response was always to slink away and hide. (I was even tempted to hide!) Their hiding place of choice was under the dining room table. After a time, that became their default position whenever they were in trouble.

One memorable day, we came home from church to find our kitchen in total chaos. One of our two charmers had knocked over a full wastebasket. Oh, the mess! Eggshells and coffee grounds, shredded paper towels and soggy newspaper … all smeared over the floor. My husband roared to those two miscreants, “Get Under The Table!” He might have said it several times, despite the fact that both of them at this point were already under that table. I turned to get a broom and start the cleanup when the phone rang. It was our next-door neighbor. He and his family lived on the other side of our duplex. “Hi Mike,” I said. “What’s up?” “Sharon,” he replied, “We’re all under the table. What should we do now?” Oh, how we laughed! Perhaps we needed to turn the volume down just a bit!

Not too surprising that our dogs chose to hide when caught doing something wrong, is it? At the very beginning of our world, when the first wrongful act was committed, Adam and Eve hid. It’s our natural tendency. We’re ashamed when we’re caught doing something wrong. Our instinctive response is to hide. Who wants to be scolded? Who wants their sin pointed out?

However, just like our big dogs who were hardly “hidden” as they slunk under our table still in plain sight, we can’t really hide either. God sees our wrong behaviors. Oftentimes, no matter how we might try to hide them, our sins become obvious to others as well.

The good news: there is a better way! Because of Christ’s death on the cross, bearing our shame and sin for us, we are freed from that perceived need to hide. We can ask forgiveness, knowing that the love of our Savior compels Him to forgive us—our debt is paid in full. The glorious truth is that we can approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need. We can come out from under that table, walk directly toward our Master and find grace. Undeserved pardon. Mercy freely given. No more hiding. It’s humbling. It’s amazing. It’s grace.

Don’t stay hidden. Don’t let the enemy of your soul badger you into hiding … where you can do no good for God’s kingdom. Ask and receive forgiveness and start again. That is the glorious good news that we Christians share with others. We are free. Praise be to God!

Thank You for grace and mercy undeserved, dear Lord. Help me to walk in freedom, ever grateful for Your great forgiveness, and desiring to serve You with a glad heart. In Jesus’ Name, Amen.

You are loved,
Sharon

Sweet Selah Ministries

Vision To encourage a movement away from the belief that “busy is better”
and toward the truth that stillness and knowing God matter most—
and will be reflected in more effective work and service

Mission 
To offer resources and retreats that help women pause (Selah)
and love God more deeply as they know Him more intimately (Sweet)

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